Dark Redemption
by MissyL626
Summary: After Valerie is almost killed by her husband she is sent to Dauntless for protection and self-defense training. She's broken, beaten, and numb. With nothing and no one to lose, she puts her all into her training, igniting a fire within herself. Eric is forced to protect and train her, and little does he know, she might light a fire within him as well.
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One: The Escape.

She hears her feet echo as they hit the wet pavement under her while she runs. It is late at night in Amity, and the moonlight illuminates the glistening ground but she pays no attention as she runs as fast as can. Adrenaline is surging through her veins as she ignores the ache in her legs and her stomach as she night is chilly and she isn't wearing a coat but she hardly feels the cool fall air biting at her skin. Her mind vaguely registers the fact that she is bleeding as those areas felt cold when the air hits them. The colorful leaves blurred on the ground and she gasps in air, trying desperately to keep herself going.

She runs faster when she sees the hospital come into view. Her vision is fading in and out now but she forces her legs to carry her faster to the front doors. She knows that is she stops before she gets there she will die. She grunts as she makes it to the doors and flings herself through them, not being able to feel her legs anymore.

The last thing she sees before the darkness takes over, are many pairs of feet heading in her direction and she blacks out before any of them can reach her.

When she wakes up she is in a hospital bed. Machines are beeping around her and she's attached to an IV. She doesn't dare move because there was already a sharp pain in her stomach, threatening to tear her apart from inside. She takes a few deep breaths and searches the bed for a button to call someone. Before she can find it she is greeted by a nurse. She has platinum blonde hair, baby blue eyes and a sweet smile. She can't be any more than eighteen years old.

"Take it easy," The nurse tells her softly as she swiftly moves to her side to check the machines next to her bed. "You were in pretty bad shape when we found you on the floor of the lobby. It's a good thing you made it here when you did." Her voice is soft and gentle. "What's your name?"

"Valerie," She answers, as she watches the young nurse look her over for any signs of trouble. When she talks she realizes how dry her mouth and throat are and she clears her throat.

"I'm Danielle, I'll be your nurse for the evening." She steps back and smiles at her patient. "I'm glad to see you awake. I'm going to go get your pain meds and inform the doctor that you are awake. I'll be back in a moment."

Valerie watches as the nurse leaves the room quickly, closing the light wooden door behind her. Valerie tries to ignore the searing pain in her stomach and takes this time to take in her surroundings. All the walls are white as expected in a hospital. She's in what she is guessing is a recovery room. She frowns to herself as she realizes she must have had emergency surgery, because that was the only time they took patients to recovery rooms. There was a big flat screen TV on the wall in front of her bed and there was a big window looking over the city to her left. Other than that the room was pretty bare, there was a couch and a chair for visitors and a sink to the right of her bed. She was covered up in white sheets and she was sitting halfway up on the bed with two pillows behind her back.

Closing her eyes, she tries to take deep breaths as memories fly to the front of her mind. She can still feel his hands on her. She has no idea how long she was unconscious. Tears forming in her eyes make them sting and she takes more deep breaths as her heart starts hammering in her chest, making her chest ache. She closes her eyes as her head starts throbbing and she can feel that her face was aching as well now.

The nurse enters the room again, still with a kind smile on her face. She has water and some pills on a tray, along with some ice-chips. She places the tray on the bed and presses a button on the bed that has Valerie sitting up a bit more. Valerie doesn't miss the way her stomach muscles protest to the motion.

"You don't want to eat right away. I brought you some ice-chips so that you could eat those. And here, take these, they'll help with the pain." She hands Valerie two pills and the water and she takes them as the nurse watches her. When she is done she hands the cup back and relaxes against the bed, trying to get her thoughts together. It's silent for a moment as the nurse works in the room. A few minutes later she appears on the side of the bed again with a clipboard with papers attached and a pen in hand.

She gives Valerie a sweet smile again before she speaks quietly, and softly. "The doctor will be in shortly. I need to ask you a few questions in the meantime." She looks at Valerie and she nods at her in response.

The questions start out simple enough. She asks things like Address and phone number and if Valerie has any insurance. Valerie isn't surprised by the next questions in the least, but she doesn't really want to answer. She grits her teeth when the nurse looks down at her paper and frowns.

"What happened to you?" She asks bluntly, and watches Valerie's face as she pauses to gather her thoughts. "Start from the beginning." Danielle presses gently and waits patiently.

"I came home from work early," Valerie starts. She looks down at her hands as she talks. She didn't even want to think about it, but she knows she has no choice. She had to get this over with. She was done protecting the person who hurt her so much. She was done with this life. "I walked in on my husband with another woman." Her voice is low and soft but it breaks with pain as she speaks. "He jumped off of her and she got dressed in a flash and ran off. I told him to get out and that we were over. He got angry and grabbed me. Long story short, he stabbed me. He was trying to kill me. I got away from him and ran out of the front door and all the way here."

She looked up to see Danielle frowning at her. "He was arrested. I didn't know you were involved until you gave me your information. He was detained, and he's not going anywhere." Relief flooded through Valerie as she watched Danielle writing on the form in front of her. When she was done, she stood up and moved her chair back against the wall.

"Are you feeling better?" She asks her before she leaves, making Valerie realize that she can't feel the searing pain in her stomach anymore. She did flinch though, thinking about Brandon's eyes as he stabbed her, so full of hate.

She's still in shock. She can't believe anything that had just happened was real. She was waiting for this nightmare to be over. Brandon was her best friend, she had thought. They had been together for almost six years, and she thought that they were close. She had been wrong about everything and it made her feel like she didn't know anything anymore. How could she have been so blind for so long. She bit her lip as tears threatened to fall again.

There was a quick tapping on the door and then it opened slowly. Her eyes flew to the door to see the doctor walking in. The print on her name tag read "Dr. Greene" and she was an older woman with salt and pepper hair pulled up into a bun behind her head. When she got closer Valerie saw that she had light green eyes, and she was very pretty for her age.

Dr. Greene stopped at the side of her bed and gave her a small smile. "Hello Valerie. I'm Doctor Greene, I have been taking care of you during your stay here with us."

Valerie manages to give her a small, un-enthusiastic smile and a nod. "How long have I been here?" She asks the older woman.

"About three days." She tells her softly and continues on without waiting for her reaction. "Luckily, your husband missed your vital organs. You will make a full recovery, but it was touch and go there for a while. It's a miracle that you were able to make it that far on foot in the condition you were in. It must have taken a lot of determination to live." She watches as amazement sparkles in the doctors eyes.

Valerie remains silent, watching the doctor as she grabs her file and looks through it while speaking again. "You almost bled to death. We had to take you into emergency surgery to stitch you up in some vital places. You did well, and you are out of the woods now. You will make a full recovery, but you need to take it easy for a couple of weeks. You will be able to leave tomorrow, I'll send you home with pain medication and some fresh bandages. The nurse will teach you how to change them, and you'll need to do that each night after a shower or before you go to bed." She watches as the doctor writes in her chart some more. "Now that you are awake though, Johanna will want to speak with you. I'll send her in once I leave here."

Valerie nods at the doctor, too tired to really respond. She feels like her world just got knocked out from underneath her feet and she doesn't know which way is up and which way is down.

The doctor leaves and she nibbles on ice chips while she waits for Johanna to arrive. It wasn't long before the door opens again and she strolls in. She smiles kindly at Valerie as she enters, and then stops at the end of her bed in front of her.

"I'm not going to ask you how you are feeling, I'm sure the answer is lousy," Johanna says softly, a hint of sadness lingering in her tone as she takes in the sight of Valerie beat up before her. Johanna was shocked that the son of one of her best friends David would put his hands on his wife, and stab her. This was Amity, violence was not common here. When it did happened it shocked everyone. No one could believe what Brandon had done to Valerie. Brandon and Valerie never caused trouble, they appeared to be the perfect couple. Both good looking and happy. Johanna had a heavy heart today. "I'm so sorry that this happened to you. You're such a loving and kind young woman, Valerie. Don't let this break you." Johanna's voice was laced with sincerity and generosity that made her the perfect leader of the faction.

Valerie didn't respond to her, but watched her with kind eyes, showing her that she was listening. And nodding her head when she felt it appropriate. She just didn't really feel like speaking, or moving… or breathing.

"We do have a problem though. While Brandon is detained, I do not feel like it is safe for you to be here. I feel like it might be better for you to get away for a while. There is someone that I know can protect you. He is in Dauntless, and I think it might be good for you to go there for at least a while. You will be protected and you can learn how to defend yourself, in case you do come back and he does come back in the future. You don't have to stay in Dauntless permanently, if you don't want to. But while you are there you will be watched 24/7 and trained when you are feeling better." She watches Valerie's face for any kind of reaction. She frowns as she watches Valerie take in the information, pain evident on her face. Johanna knows her head must be spinning, her whole world changed in the matter of minutes.

Valerie nods suddenly, tears sparkling in her eyes. She wants to get away. She wants to get as far away from the memories as possible. "Okay." Is all she says, and then she waits for Johanna to respond to her. Johanna gives her a sad smile.

"Good. We will miss you, Valerie. We have enjoyed having you here with us, and we hope that you come back someday." She hands Valerie a piece of paper with information about where she is to go when she gets to Dauntless. "You'll be asking for Max when you arrive. The man who will be guarding you and training you during your stay is named Eric. He is grumpy, and a bit harsh but he is a good soldier and he will be able to protect you. And there is no one better to train you to defend yourself." She gives Valerie another small smile and then walks over to the side of the bed and wraps her arms around her gently, giving her a soft squeeze before letting go. Valerie returns her hug, she actually will miss Johanna. She had never met such a kind, giving woman in her life.

Johanna runs her hand gently down the side of Valerie's Auburn hair and then leaves the room quickly.

Valerie lets her head fall back and closes her eyes. It's not hard for her to stay calm, despite the dread, sadness, and fear running through her. Mostly she is just numb. He finally made her break. Her eyes started stinging again as she thinks of Brandon. He was all that she had. He was her whole world. She stayed faithful to him, never even as much as looked at other men. She never thought in a million years that he would cheat on her. She tried to push him out of her mind, knowing that he would just come back.

She honestly had no idea what happened. Pushing the thoughts away, she focuses on her breathing. Terror was slowly rising in her. She has no home anymore, she has no one.

Amity has been her home since she could remember. She loved it here. She fit in well, being born a compassionate and loving person. She thought that her life was perfect. All of her dreams had come true. She married the man she loved, and they shared a beautiful home together. She loved her job, working at the local bakery, helping old Mr. Peterson bake all kinds of sweets for desert that they would hand out after dinner and sell on the side. She loved cooking, it was a passion of hers, along with many other things.

None of that mattered to her now though. With the way she felt right now, she wasn't sure if she'd ever be able to enjoy anything ever again. Her world used to be bright, she saw beauty everywhere, but it was black now. She saw no colors, no beauty, she just felt the heaviness in her chest. She hoped time would heal the pain, but at the moment she didn't know how it would. She didn't know how anything could take this away. How would she ever trust anyone again? Had he ruined her forever? Probably. She didn't feel like the same kind and selfless person. She couldn't imagine giving herself away to anyone like that again, making herself vulnerable.

She had herself, and that was all that she needed. A new determination rose up inside her. She was going to go to Dauntless, she was going to become a fighter. And she was going to set his world on fire. Brandon would be sorry that he ever touched her. No one was going to do this to her ever again. That she was sure of.

Eric's POV

There was a loud knock on Eric's door as he was rushing to finish up his paperwork for the day. He was already irritated that he was stuck doing it, because an initiate decided to shoot himself in the foot. Eric couldn't believe that someone could be so stupid and careless. He was sick of putting his life on the line, training these kids who had no idea how to do pretty much anything!

He tried to hide his annoyance a bit as he could tell it was Max knocking, but he didn't want to be bothered right now. He just wanted to get some dinner and go for a run. Running cleared his head, it calmed him and made it so he didn't go to bed and dream about violently murdering every one of his initiates. He didn't know how much longer he could take being an instructor, one of those morons were going to kill him one day.

He called out for Max to enter, and sat up in his chair as the Dauntless leader entered his office. He nodded at him in greeting and got straight to the point. Eric always liked that about Max. No small talk, not beating around the bush and wasting his time. He just got the business out of the way.

"I have an assignment for you," Max told him. The tone of his voice made Eric groan internally. He could tell that he wasn't going to like this one. "There is a girl being transferred here tomorrow. She was stabbed by her husband and Johanna feels like it would do her some good to not only get away but she needs our protection."

Yep. Fuck today. Eric suppressed the urge to roll his eyes. Why did he get stuck doing this? Was Four busy?

Max paid no attention to the scowl on the blonde leader's face. Eric was never really happy about anything.

"You are my best soldier." He tells Eric, answering his unspoken question. "You are the best fighter here. You can teach her how to protect herself."

"Who is this girl?" Eric grumbles. Why is she so special? Why do we need to protect her? He didn't ask these questions out loud, but he didn't get it. Why did Max care? Eric was growing suspicious that he and Johanna have something going on that is more than just a business relationship. He wants to question him but doesn't, knowing better than to question his superior.

"Her name is Valerie May. She's Twenty-four, from Amity. Works as a baker, and is currently in the hospital. Her husband stabbed her and she almost bled out. Ran on foot to the hospital, it was two miles away. She nearly died in the lobby, but she made it. Johanna called me, asking me if we could protect her and teach her to defend herself. If she does well here, it will be up to her if she wants to go back or not. But you will oversee everything she does. Train her, and don't take your eyes off of her. We don't know where this guy is mentally, he could try and find her. I know that you will do the best job. That's why I chose you." Eric notices that Max seems impressed with the girl. More than likely he sees potential in her, if there is one thing that Eric has learned about Max through the years, it's that he loves to see people fight to live, and this girl was obviously a fighter.

Eric sighs quietly as Max drops a folder on his desk. Eric opens the yellow folder and picks up the pictures that sit on top of a stack of papers. There is a picture of her on top of the stack. She is standing with another woman, who appears to be her mother from the looks of it. Both of the woman have long auburn hair, with matching brownish green eyes eyes and pale skin. They are smiling, with their arms around each other. They appear to be outside, at a park possibly. His first impression of her is that she is actually very beautiful, not that beauty was enough to impress him. Woman tended to stay away from him anyway, and none of them ever really held his interest. But he was a man, and he was alive, and he had to admit the she was good looking. The pictures underneath were of her injuries.

His eyes narrowed as he took in the images in his hand. Her husband definitely meant to kill her. There were bruises all over her body, she was bloody and messy when the pictures where taken and obviously close to death. Eric gritted his teeth. He was not the type to be compassionate, or sympathetic. He had killed many in cold blood, he had done horrible things. He didn't care either, he slept like a baby at night. He didn't care if people liked him, he didn't let anyone get close. Not much really bothered him, but for some reason, these pictures did. He finds himself wondering what kind of coward of a man would hurt a woman, a woman who couldn't defend herself. Eric finds himself wishing that the asshole would have picked a fight with him instead. If there was one thing that Eric did not respect, it was cowardly actions, and domestic violence was one of those.

He closes her file and nods at Max. "Yes sir. When will she be here?" His voice trails off as he realizes that he would need to watch her at all times, and that probably meant that she would be staying at his place. He curses inwardly. Why did it have to be him? He couldn't even work well with others during the day. Roommates? Ugh. "Where will she be staying Max?" He prays that Max has another solution.

"She'll be here tomorrow at noon, and she will be staying with you. Unless she is in the bathroom, there needs to be a camera on her at all times. I'll have Four set up cameras in your place, everywhere but your bedroom and bathroom. There will be a camera in hers though. If you need to leave her side, you get me. I'll be reporting back to Johanna. Let me know how it goes."

Eric gives Max a quick nod and watches as Max leaves, shutting the door behind him. Eric buries his head in his hands. He wonders how long she'll be staying with him. He hopes he can refrain from killing her himself. He feels a pang of guilt for that thought, but he quickly pushes it away.

As hard as it is for him to admit to himself, a part of him actually does feel sorry for this girl. He sighs and rubs his temples. He is going to hate every single second of this. He just hopes the girl has enough sense to stay out of his way.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two: The Road To Recovery

The next morning was a blur for Valerie. It seemed like every two minutes someone was shoving papers at her for her to sign. She was given instructions for her wound care and her pain medicine. She was transported to Dauntless by plane in the early morning. She was feeling self –conscious, still being in her hospital gown and some blankets. She would have preferred to wear something else but her old clothes were in a evidence locker in Amity somewhere.

She didn't think about the last few days, she didn't acknowledge her broken heart. She felt like a zombie, like her mind just couldn't comprehend what was happening to her. She couldn't think about the way she was hurt, if she let herself feel it she would fall apart. She had to stay strong, she had to fight.

When they arrived in Dauntless she was lead to the back of a building and into an empty office. There was a huge black table and black chairs in the middle of the room. She was still in a wheelchair, they wouldn't let her walk so she didn't aggravate her stomach muscles. She felt pathetic. This was not the first impression that she wanted people to have of her. She did her best to look as confident as possible, but she couldn't wait to get some actual clothes on.

She sat alone in the room for maybe thirty seconds before the door opened and two men appeared. They were talking to each other, looking at each other as they did so and she watched them as they walked past her. One of them sat in the chair and the other stood behind him. They finished their conversation quietly before both of their eyes fell on her. The one in the chair gave her a small smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. He appeared tired. His hair and skin where dark and he was very muscular and bulky. The one behind him was a bit thinner but still huge. He had broad shoulders and huge muscles. His face was more boyish but in no way did he look like a boy. He was all man.

Her eyes lingered on him for a minute longer than they should have. He gazed back at her with no expressions on his face. She couldn't help but notice how his jaw line was perfect and his face was chiseled. He had full lips and blue eyes that his so much behind their depths, even with the blank expression. She could feel power coming off of him in waves, and it made her stomach feel weightless.

Her eyes fell back to the man in the chair.

"Hello Valerie," he says in a professional tone, holding out his hand. She shakes it firmly and he grins at her. "Welcome to Dauntless. I'm Max and this Eric." He nods his head backwards to the man standing on his left.

She looks at Eric again to find him staring at her. She resists the urge to squirm. She can feel his eyes on her. His gaze is intense and she can almost feel his impatience rolling off of his body. She gives him a small smile which he doesn't return and then turns to Max and gives him the same small smile.

"Nice to meet you." She tells them both. Eric doesn't respond to her at all, just watches her from his position behind Max.

"I wish it were under better circumstances, but I think you'll find your time here helpful. You'll be staying with Eric so that you are under his protection at all times. Don't leave his side. I know you've had a long few days. I'll let you get settled in. In a few days please come back and see me so we can discuss a few things regarding your training and routine here. First get better and if you need anything until them, just ask me or Eric."

"Got it, thank you."

He gives her a small nod and then stands up. "A nurse will be by to check on you every few hours." Eric looks like he's not happy about that one. She frowns slightly, mentally taking note to try not to be too intrusive while she's there. "Eric, please take her to get a few toiletries and clothes. Then dinner and straight to bed."

Although its clear to her that Eric is not happy, he nods his head at Max. "Yes sir." His voice is deep and she suppresses the shiver that runs up her spine at the sound of it. She feels her chair moving and turns to see a woman with shiny long black hair and olive skin pushing the chair. Eric walks behind them and she swears she feels his eyes on the back of her head.

She's wheeled down into the Dauntless compound, she watches her surroundings, trying to get familiar with this new place. One thing she likes about it instantly is how its almost as if they were underground. Winding dark tunnels, rocks, some brown colored walls surrounded by shiny black metal stairs. She couldn't tell where they lead. Being from Amity, she loved nature naturally. Although the place was kind of confined, it still almost felt like being outdoors to her.

Eric is silent as they make their way through the empty halls. Valerie wonders where everyone is. She hears voices as they approach a large room with two open doors. She sees instantly that it's a clothes store, and they had entered through the back door.

Eric steps in front of her and hands her a card. "Get what you need." He tells her flatly and then walks away to the other side of the store.

"I'm Sierra." The girl behind her tells her.

Valerie turns around and gives the girl a small smile.

"Where to?" she asks Valerie.

"I need a tooth brush, toothpaste, soap, and some clothes. I have nothing. I should probably stick to pajamas and dresses though, comfortable things." Valerie answers as she looks around her.

Sierra helps her find what she needs and they don't take more than twenty minutes. Eric doesn't say it out loud but he's impressed. He was hoping he wouldn't have to wait around too long while they went on a shopping spree of something. Who knows . But Valerie got only what she needed and did it quickly, much to his liking.

They got back to his apartment soon after and he took her into his spare room and Sierra got her set up in the bed.

Valerie was pleasantly surprised by how comfortable the bed was and it was pretty wide too, big enough to fit at least two people. Sierra sat her up in the middle and placed a few books beside her, along with some magazines and word puzzles.

Valerie found that was pretty comfortable and relaxed here. Eric's apartment was really nice. She was blown away by the kitchen when they had entered. The front door lead straight in and there dark marble counters and an island with dark wooden chairs lined up under it. It was pretty big and it was completely spotless. She found herself wondering if he had a maid or of he did it himself.

The living room had hardwood floors, a black couch and a nice sized TV. His whole place seemed to be decorated in dark browns, blacks and red. Her room was painted a dark gray and she had black blankets over dark gray sheets in her bed. The pillows behind her where also dark gray and black. There's a dress or on the right side of her bed, beside the door and to her left there's a bathroom.

Eric grumbles that he's going to grab her some food. Sierra excuses herself after Valarie is comfortable. She flips through a magazine that Sierra left for her, she wasn't really seeing it though. Her thoughts are all over the place.

She's a little bit bothered that Eric doesn't seem happy about her being there. Obviously they were strangers, she didn't expect him to be excited or anything. But she didn't want to be a burden to someone else. It was clear to her that he didn't want to let Max down so he was doing his job. She couldn't wait for the day when she could be on her own again.

Soon after she finished absent mindedly flipping through the magazine Eric came through the door with a tray of food for her. His eyebrow piercing gleams in the light as he enters the room. He doesn't look at her as he walks toward her. Her stomach is instantly in knots again, just from his presence. He places the tray down in front of her.

She looks down at the tray. There is lasagna, bread and salad. Next to the plate there is a can of pop and a water, clearly he wasn't sure what she would want.

He is looking at her when she looks up, his face hard and unreadable as usual.

"You good?" He asks her. She doesn't miss the small hint of irritation in his voice. "Need anything else?"

She looks down at her food and picks up her fork. "Looks delicious. Thank you very much." She tells him politely and then her attention is on her food. Its been days since she's eaten and its heavenly. Eric leaves the room as she eats.

Shortly after she's finished Eric and Sierra come into her room together. Eric wordlessly grabs her plate and exits the room. Sierra takes her into the bathroom and helps her get washed up and changed into her pajamas. They are simple black pajama shorts and a light blue tank top.

Once her teeth are brushed and Valerie is clean enough, Sierra helps her back into bed, gives her pain medication, and tells her she'll see her in the morning.

Just before Valerie can get relaxed again, Eric is in the room again. He is wearing black pajama pants and a black sleeveless shirt. She can't help but look at him as he enters. He stops at the end of her bed and gazes at her with cold eyes.

"I'm heading to bed. There's camera in here, and I have a live feed in my room. There's no cameras in your bathroom. There's motion sensor in here so if you get up out of bed my computer will let me know by beeping and flashing. Just try and stay in bed unless you have to use the bathroom. I'll bring the wheel chair in for you and put it next to your bed. Take it easy if you do get up, you don't to re-open your wound."

She nods at him and he leaves for a minute before returning with a different, better looking wheel chair for her. He places it by her side and locks the wheels.

"I have someone bringing you a TV tomorrow." He tells her. She smiles in response, and again he doesn't return her smile. When he's sure she's good he leaves the room and turns the light off on his way out. It doesn't take long before the exhaustion taking over. Her head feels heavy and she let's fall back against the pills and settles her aching body into the bed. Sleep takes her quickly.

Sierra wakes her at noon the next day. She allows Valerie to take a shower on her own but stayed close to the bathroom door and listened for any yelling or loud bangs. Valerie felt much better after her shower and she puts on a black dress that falls in the middle of her thighs but wasn't tight around the waist so it didn't bother her wounds.

She didn't see Eric until breakfast which he brought her while she sat on her bed reading a book about the rainforest. Just like the night before he got her a little of everything. The tray was full with more food than she could eat. Pancakes, toast, eggs, bacon, sausage, potatoes and fruit. She instantly picked up a strawberry and bit into it, savoring the sweet juices that escaped it and poured into her mouth.

"Mmm, these are good," she says with her eyes closed. When she opens her eyes again, Eric is staring at her intently with dark eyes. She smirks at him.

"Want some?" His eyes fly to hers when she speaks. To her surprise he steps forward and quickly grabs a strawberry off of her plate. The butterflies are back as she watches him bring it to his full lips. She notices that he has long blond eyelashes. He eats it in one bite, his eyes meeting hers again before tossing the end of it in the a garbage can next to her bed.

He gives her a quick smirk before leaving again. Her heart hammers in her chest even when he's gone. She has no idea how he affects her like this, but he does.

She finishes her breakfast and closes her eyes for a little bit.

She wakes up to the feel of someone's cool hands on her for head. Eric is feeling her head with a concerned look on his face. She realizes she's drenched in sweat. She has a fever. Wonderful, she thinks to herself.

Eric gets Sierra who gives her something to get the fever down. It makes her sleepy. She spends the next 24 hours drifting in and out of sleep, only waking up when Eric would bring her food and when she and Sierra came to check on her.

Eric's POV

As he sits in his living room Eric reads through Valerie's file. He figures it's a good idea, considering he was sharing his home with her. He scowls as he loves the pictures of her injuries off of the top of the stack of papers.

After reading the reports of what happened to her that night, he pours himself a drink of whiskey and sits on his couch, his mind lost in thought. He wasn't happy about sharing his place. He definitely wasn't happy that he had to give up his spare time and change his life around for some girl he didn't even know.

As much as he didn't want to admit it, Valerie wasn't as irritating as he'd expected. Its unusual that people don't get on his nerves. There was something about her though, her calm nature, the way she didn't bitch or whine about the pain. He could tell she was in a lot of pain but she didn't complain once. She actually seemed thankful, even though he'd barley spoken to her. She didn't seem put off by it.

He didn't know what to expect from her. He'd never met someone who surprised him like that before. He couldn't deny that she was pretty hot too. He wasn't about to let himself go there though.

He sighed to himself as he made his way to his bed. Knowing this was only a temporary situation it made better. He was determined to impress Max. Maybe then he will be able to prove that he's better than number boy once and for all.


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three: Freedom

Four days later Valerie is able to get up out of bed on her own and walk around. She couldn't be happier. It's amazing how many things she took for granted before, it was so nice not to have to rely on Sierra or Eric for little things.

Eric still hadn't talked to her much. He brought her breakfast, lunch, and dinner but that was about it. He really was not the talkative type. He made no attempts to have conversations with her or get to know her. He did his job well though. He always brought her food at the same times each day, he always made sure she had what she needed.

Sierra kept her company, knowing how Eric could be. Sierra would check on her often in the past few days and have conversations with her here and there about anything and everything. Valerie learned a lot about Sierra in those few days. She'd transferred from abnegation. Her parents were killed when she was a baby. Her boyfriend's name is Kyle and he is in Dauntless with her. He works as a tattoo artist. Sierra had a lot of tattoos that were out of sight. It was safe to say that she and Sierra were becoming friends. Sierra stopped by in the morning to let her know that she was good to go, but to take it easy still with physical activities. She left her a bottle of meds and told her that she would see her soon. She of course made Valerie swear up and down that she would call her if she needed anything, or anytime she wanted to talk.

She had just finished showering and made her way back to her room. She jumped when she saw Eric standing there. His eyes gleamed when she jumped. He seemed amused by her reaction. She ignored his presence and started sorting through her things trying to find her brush, waiting for him to speak.

"I figured since you aren't confined to your bed now, you might want to have lunch with the others." He tells her and she runs a brush through her long hair as she turns to look at him. He's wearing black pants and a black vest, with a dark blue shirt underneath it. His tattoos are poking out from under his shirt at his neck and biceps.

"Yeah, that sounds good." She responds and finds the shoes that she and Sierra picked out. Eric watches her put her shoes on and then when she stands up he takes a few steps toward her. She has no idea why, but her body reacts instantly. The butterflies are back, and her heart is pounding furiously.

"We can also go get you some more clothes. You need clothes for training, and you can get whatever else you'd like as well." He tells her, his intense gaze is fixed on her has he talks.

She nods at him and then he leads her into the kitchen. He grabs himself some coffee from a fresh pot on his kitchen counter. "Want some?" He asks her, his tone flat.

"No thanks, makes me dizzy." She tells him as she watches him pour the coffee into a travel mug. He doesn't respond to her.

"Hey Eric?" She says softly and his eyes fly to hers. He doesn't respond, just waits for her to continue. "Thank you."

He looks shocked. "For what?" He demands in an icy tone. She gives him a small smile.

"For letting me stay here, for taking care of me when I needed someone. For protecting me. Giving up your space…" he voice trails off as she watches his face. He looks completely dumbfounded.

And he is. Eric had never met someone like her. He couldn't help but give the girl credit where it was due. She was betrayed, beaten, and almost died. She lost her home, her family, had no one and she never once complained. Her body was broken when she got here, and her barley winced. Never complained about the pain. She stayed out of his way, never asked him for anything unless necessary and gave him respect constantly. And now she was thanking him for just doing his job. Even though it was clear to here that he didn't want her here.

He was actually speechless and that was rare for him. He watched her face as she waited for his response patiently. Normally he would have scoffed at someone who thanked him. Normally, he would say some sort of smart ass comment, he would roll his eyes, and walk away.

She was starting to grow nervous, and he could see it.

"Yeah, no problem," He grumbles at her.

So far she hadn't been too bad to be around. He hardly knew she was there. Sure, he had to deal with Sierra coming in and out three times a day. And he had to take time out of his day to get her meals, but that was the extent of it so far. He hoped that it would stay that way now that she wasn't stuck in bed anymore.

He goes to his door and nods at her for her to follow him. She does, and he walks slightly in front of her, but close enough that he could turn and catch her if she fell. She noticed that he walked at a slower pace than normal, he was going easy on her. Her heart warmed a little bit at the realization.

They entered a room with a bunch of tables, and there was what she figured was most of the members of Dauntless sitting down and eating. Eric takes her to a line and shows her where all of the food is. She selects her food and he leads her to a table. They sit down across from each other and eat in silence as she glances around the room.

There are many eyes on the two of them. Everyone is obviously curious about her. She gets a few smiles and waves, but everyone minds their own business for the most part.

After they finish eating, Eric takes her to the same store they were in last time and she gets a few regular outfits and a few for training. Again Eric is happy that she doesn't make a fuss about it, just gets what she needs and then they are done.

After shopping Eric takes her to see Max, so that they can discuss the rest of their stay.

He smiles brightly at her as he enters his office where she is waiting, sitting in the chair in front of his desk. Eric stands behind her this time, and it makes her kind of nervous but she doesn't react.

"Valerie!" Max exclaims and then plops down in his chair. "You are looking much better. How have things been going?" She returns his smile.

"Good." She tells him. "I feel much better." His eyes land on Eric behind her.

"And Eric has been making your stay comfortable?" He asks her. Eric wonders briefly if she'll complain, since he never really talks to her more than when he has to. Of course, she doesn't.

"He's been great." She tells Max, and she doesn't miss the surprise on his face. She can hear Eric shifting behind her.

"Good to hear," Max responds and pulls out a sheet of paper. He looks it over for a minute and then glances at Valerie. "So, one of the things we will be expecting from you during your stay here is that you help out. We have a few positions over, I'd like you to take a look at this list and pick one." He slides the paper over to her and she looks it over quickly.

There are only a few choices. Cleaning, kitchen duty, and school teacher. She's ecstatic to see kitchen duty. It doesn't take her long to pick that.

"Kitchen duty." She answers fairly quickly and he nods his head.

"Very well," He takes the paper from her and writes her name next to the position. "You'll start tomorrow night. You are to do no heavy lifting though, and I'll make sure your supervisor knows that. You'll train with Eric after breakfast every day, work kitchen starting at 5 pm and then the rest of the evenings are your free time to do what you wish, as long as you stay near Eric, of course."

She nods at him and gives him a polite smile.

He dismisses her and Eric.

"We'll start your training tomorrow as well," he tells her. "You can just take today to prepare. I have some documents for you to go over back at the apartment."

"Alright." She answers him. She is surprised when he lets out a chuckle. "What?" She asks him and peeks at him out of the corner of her eye where he is walking beside her.

"I'm not used to things being so easy," he tells her with a little smirk on his face. "Most of my initiates back talk me and question me about _everything._ " He tells her simply and keeps walking.

She shrugs. She just doesn't see a reason to argue with him. He leads her to a section of dauntless that she hasn't seen before. They enter through a large door under a pair of the black metal stairs. Eric un-locks the door and ushers her inside. There are a few men sitting in what appears to be a control room. There are cameras everywhere, showing virtually every section of the faction.

Eric stands behind one of the men in the chairs. Valerie is shocked when Eric starts barking orders at him, in a clipped icy tone. "Click on that screen right there. Did you check what I told you to?" The man in front of him turns to him and glares right back at him.

"Eric, I told you already, there is no footage of it. He did it off camera." Valerie sees the man's face for the first time. He has dark hair and dark blue eyes, he's a little smaller and shorter than Eric. He also has tattoos.

"I heard you the first time _Four,"_ Eric says, his tone even darker and more clipped. "But I asked you to double check."

"And I did. There is nothing."

The man turns back around and Eric is glaring at his back. There is another guy to the right of him and when Eric sees him staring he gives him a murderous glare as well. "What the fuck are you looking at?" He asks the guy whose eyes fall back to the screen in front of him.

Eric barks some more orders at them before walking off in a huff. "Let's go." He says to her before walking off again, and the others look at her then as if they didn't see her standing there before.

"Who is she?" Four asks as we are leaving the room.

"None of your damn business," Eric snaps as they leave the room.

Valerie is surprised to see Eric interact that way. He was quiet around her but never snapped at her the way he did with Four. On the way back to his apartment she learned it wasn't just with Four. Right before they got to his door, she was being lifted from behind by a strong set of arms.

She's startled at first, and Eric turns to her, just as surprised and looking irritated as hell. She turns to see someone she never thought that she would see again standing in front of her.

Her ex-boyfriend, the guy the broke her heart before anyone else did. The guy that she would always have feelings for, but could never have. Cory. He was standing in front of her. She hadn't seen him in years. He left Amity for Dauntless when he turned 18. They were still together when he made this decision and it obviously crushed her.

His dark hair shined in the light and he had a huge smile on his face. One that reached his bright blue eyes, he was definitely happy to see her. He was a charmer, every girl wanted him. And he was dangerous for her heart. She forced herself to return his smile before he was wrapping his arms around her and pulling her into a big hug.

"You know him?" Eric is snarling beside her.

"Yeah." She tells him, barley able to breathe while she's being squeezed by Cory's strong arms.

"Val!" he says as he places her down, looking her up and down. "I've missed you."

She resisted the urge to roll her eyes at him. He's the one that left her.

"How have you been?" He asks her.

She shakes her head and is thankful when Eric steps between them.

"She's busy right now." He says in a clipped voice, leaving no room for argument. "You'll have to catch up later." He says and he's towing her away from Cory.

Valerie gives Cory a small apologetic smile. "Later" she mouths to him as Eric drags her away.

Eric expects her to be irritated but to his surprise she seems happy. He doesn't bother to question her but he does wonder who the guy is. He didn't like him from the moment that he saw him.

Valerie couldn't believe that she didn't even think that Cory would be here. It took her years to get over her heartbreak when he left her. She met Brandon shortly and got married, but Cory was her first love. The one that she would have killed for. She never got over him leaving her, and a part of her was scared that he was even around again. She was vulnerable now more than ever. She made a mental note to try and stay away from Cory.

She could tell that Eric wanted to question her but he didn't. Instead he lead her back to his apartment and started on paperwork that he had to get done while she looked over her training schedule.

9 am-10 am Stretching/ Cardio

11 am- Noon Self Defense

Noon-1 pm Lunch

1 pm-2 pm Strength training

2 pm – 4 pm Survival skills

So she'd have an hour to get cleaned up before work. It didn't seem too bad to her. Although it was a lot of physical training and she'd never liked working out much. She figured she'd just have to get over it and bite the bullet

She found that she really did want to impress Eric, and she was nervous about the next day, not know what to expect.

"Hey Valerie." She jumps when Eric calls to her from his position on his couch. "You like to cook?" He asks her, his attention still on the paperwork in front of her.

"Yeah, I love it." She answers him and stands at the side of the couch. "Why?"

"Would you mind making some dinner? I'm going to be working late. There's food in the fridge."

She smiles to herself, this was definitely progress with Eric. Her smile fades when he looks at her impatiently, waiting for her answer.

"Yes, of course. No problem at all." She answers and heads to the kitchen without looking at him to see his reaction.

She keeps it simple and breads some chicken, makes some veggies and mashed potatoes in a little under an hour. When she does she sets two plates on the counter bar and calls Eric to the kitchen.

His eyebrows raise as he takes in the food in front of him. "Looks good." He tells her simply, and she tries to hide the shock on her face. Did he actually just compliment her?

They both dig into their food and Eric makes an appreciative hum when he takes a bite. He doesn't speak until he is done, but she can tell he likes it by the way he piles it in his mouth.

He turns to her when he finishes, way faster than she does, and he gives her a small smile that nearly knocks her off of her chair.

"I for one am glad that you are going to be working in the kitchen, it will be a definite improvement." She smiles at him and lets out a small laugh.

"Thanks." She tells him and he nods once at her before leaving the room. She finishes her food and then washes the dishes.

As she cleans up she can hear Eric on the phone speaking with someone in his usual icy tone. She realizes that he never really speaks to her like that. He's short with her, and has a bit of irritation constantly dripping from his voice, but she had noticed today that the way he talks to other people was different than the way he talked to her. She wondered why that was but wasn't about to ask him.

When Eric gets off of the phone, he comes into the kitchen to grab a drink just as she is finishing up the dishes. He pauses when he enters, seemingly surprised that she did them without him asking. He doesn't thank her, but he doesn't have to, she is pleased with the look on his face.

"You should get to bed," he tells her. "We have to be up early, and you're body still needs more rest than usual." Valerie is taken back by his comment at first. He seemed to be showing concern for her that she had never seen before. She nods at him before heading to her room.

As she lays in bed that night she prays that she will not see Cory tomorrow and that training goes well. She has a hard time getting to sleep, thinking about all of the different possibilities that tomorrow could bring.

She goes to the kitchen for a glass of water and sees Eric sleeping on the couch. His laptop is in front of him and it beeps at him and wakes him up.

He glares at her when his eyes open and then he grabs it and slowly and sleepily walks into his room. "Goodnight _Val._ " He says before he slams the door shut.

Valerie stares at his closed door wondering what that was all about.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four: Promises

The whole staying away from Cory thing didn't work out well. He found her the next day as she walked with Eric outside to start her workout. She was in her own little world, walking slightly behind Eric when a hand wrapped firmly around her right wrist and pulled her to the side of the dark hallway.

Her gasp alerted Eric and he stopped walking and paused for a moment before he turned toward her, irritation clear on his face when his eyes fell on Cory, and the straight down to the hand on her wrist. He took her by surprise. Instead of making some sort of rude comment, he set his jaw and turned away from them. Cory waited until Eric got to the end if the hallway. He put his back against the wall and crossed his arms, never taking his eyes off of them.

Cory looks at her with wide eyes. "What are you doing with him?" he asks her bluntly. "And why is he acting like your guard dog?" it was obvious that Cory knew who Eric was but he didn't know why Valerie was in Dauntless.

Her eyes narrow at him and he drops his hand from her wrist finally. She's amazed by the fact that he feels he has the right to demand any answers from her. He left her. He missed a lot of her life. He wasn't there when she needed someone the most. Her relationship with Brandon was never perfect. Sometimes she was lonely even by his side. He didn't like it when she had friends after things started getting bad between them.

"Not here," she whispers. She can feel Eric's eyes on her, and the impatience rolling if of him in waves. Every second that she is standing there the more intense it gets. She doesn't want to make him angry before physical training.

Cory's blue eyes land on Eric, back to her, and then on Eric again earning a scowl from the blond leader at the end of the hallway.

"We don't have all day." Eric says in a gravely voice.

Cory gives her a small. "Will you be at lunch?" he asks her, his voice low.

She nods at him and he pulls her into a quick hug. She returns it half heartedly, and then runs to the end of the hallway to stand by Eric's side.

She can feel the tension radiating off of him. He's angry, his body is tense. His jaw locked. She tries to think of ways to lighten his mood but she can't think of anything that wouldn't backfire on her. She just leaves him alone so he can calm down.

He leads her outside of the Dauntless compound and into a field. It's a beautiful fall day. Fall always was her favorite season. She found herself enjoying the colors. The leaves fell from the trees in several different colors. Reds, oranges, purples, yellows, greens. The sun was bright but it wasn't too warm, the breeze taking the edge off of the sun.

The sun feels nice on her skin. Her body was almost back to normal now. There were a few aches and pains, but she felt much better than she did a few days ago. Her eyes land on Eric as they walk through the field. His hair is light in the sun. When he stops and turns to her his piercings shine. She finds herself getting lost in his blue eyes. His eyes are her favorite, she decides.

They stretch first. Valerie copies Eric's moves. Its been a while since shed worked out and her muscles are sore but she fights through it.

Next Eric takes her on a run through the woods. Its beautiful and she enjoys being able to run outside. She keeps up with Eric easily. He leads her back a little sooner than she expected. She kind of felt disappointed by it.

The day goes by pretty fast and Valerie can tell Eric is taking it easy on her. His anger seems to be fading as well. They do light work outs and stretching before a little weight lifting and them they head to lunch. Eric doesn't talk to her except for when he is telling her what to do, or helping her improve her form.

When lunch comes around Valerie finds herself dreading it. She doesn't really want to see Cory and have to answer all of his questions. Eric sits with her until Cory shows up. Cory plops down on her ride side with a big smile, that she doesn't return. Eric gets up and heads back over to the lunch line, giving them a few minutes. Knowing him they didn't have long. She was almost grateful.

Cory wastes no time. "So why are you hanging out with Eric all the time? Everyone is talking about it."

"What? Why?"

Cory leans in to whisper to her. He's a little too close for comfort but she doesn't move away. "Because Eric is never seen with any women. He doesn't let anyone get close. He doesn't date anyone, not around here at least. Any girl that's ever tried he's turned down."

Cory laughs at the look of shock on Valerie's face as she realizes how big of a deal that actually is and what people must be assuming. "People think we're dating?" she asks in a loud, demanding whisper.

Cory narrows his eyes and nods at her, his smile gone. She narrows her eyes at him, suddenly irritated. She didn't care what people thought. "Well not that its anyone's business, but we're not. Eric is just…" she pauses, choosing her words carefully. "He was assigned to help me, by Max."

Cory looks relieved, and confused at the same time. She smirks at him. Cory frowns at her. His dark blue eyes shine at her. She tries to ignore the attraction she still feels for him. He's tall, dark, handsome, and charming. All the girls want him. He could have any girl he wants, and she's not falling for his sweet words and empty promises again.

"So what happened then? You chose to stay in Amity, when you were 18. That was six years ago. Now you are here. What happened?"

Taking a deep breath, Valerie Leans closer to him so only he can hear. "I got married and the guy tried to kill me. Johanna thought it was best for me to get away for a while. They have Eric protecting me and helping me learn self defense and survival skills." Cory looks relieved and she rolls her eyes.

Thankfully Eric is back and he sits down across from them. His eyes meet only hers briefly, and them they fall to his cheeseburger on his tray and he starts putting ketchup on it.

"Do you want to meet me later tonight so that we can catch up more?" Cory asks her and she sees Eric's eyes snap to Cory's. "there is a bar by the tattoo parlor, I'll be there with some friends tonight. You should come."

"Yeah, maybe. I'll see how I feel after dinner." She tells him. Eric is still looking at his food, chewing a piece of burger and dipping a fry in ketchup.

Cory nods and then pulls her into a hug. Of course when he let's her go Eric looks irritated as hell.

Cory smiles at her and then he's gone. She goes back to eating her own fries.

"You cool with going to that bar tonight?" She asks Eric. His eyes fly up to meet hers suddenly and her heart skips a beat. He looks unamused as he swallows a bite of his burger.

Valerie is irritated that she even has to ask for his permission but she knows its for her own safety that she stays by Eric. Everything she does, he has to do too, unless Max is seems just as irritated with the situation as he thinks it through, while studying her face for something. She's not sure what he's looking for.

"Whatever." He answers her dryly. "But not too long, we have work to do in the morning, and you have a meeting with Max."

Her irritation fades slightly and she gives him a small smile. He doesn't return it but his eyes seem to lighten a bit.

After lunch he had her watch some videos about basic self defense when being attacked and makes her take notes on it. Afterwards he drops her off at the kitchen a bit early so that she can meet everyone and get set up for her first night of work.

"There's camera's in the office across the way over there," he says pointing across the hallway. "I have access to them at all times. I'll be in there if you need me."

With that he turns and walks away. As soon as she sees him disappear into the room she is greeted by a older woman with short white hair , that is clipped up on the top of her head. She has brown eyes and is a bit shorter than Valerie. Valerie gives her a smile and the lady returns it with a radiant one. Valerie likes her instantly. "I'm Maggie." She tells her and pulls Valerie into the kitchen.

Valerie is given a little tour of the huge kitchen. There were plenty of stove tops and ovens. Everything was white. They had four sinks, and a cooler and a freezer. There was also a pantry in the back. Maggie showed her around. She didn't help very much because Maggie insisted that she watch and learn first.

Maggie also introduced her to a couple other people who work in the kitchen. Their names were Angelica and Harley. Angelica was around Valerie's age and was pretty nice, but she didn't get a chance to talk to her much. Harley is older by a few years, but he's pretty cool. He joked around as he cooked, he talked a lot more than what Valerie usually liked but she didn't mind because he kept everyone entertained. She learned a few recipes. One for the breaded pork chops that were baked and a nice veggie and rice stir fry. They made apple pie for dessert and then they cleaned up as much as possible before they all got to take their own food out to the dining area and eat. Someone else would be on dishes duty tonight Maggie told her.

Valerie could feel Eric's gaze on her as she entered the dining room with their food. She grabbed his too, and she was pleased to see it was the right choice because she hadn't asked him. He had no food in front of him and she walked to him quickly, plopping down in front of him and sliding his tray to him in record time. She felt like everyone was staring at her, wondering what she was doing with Eric. She was sure they all knew the story that Max would have given them, didn't an the believed it though.

She kept her eyes on Eric as they ate, she didn't want to see if anyone was staring at her. She couldn't help but admire his features as he ate. When he tasted the food his eyes meet hers and he sents her a smile that not only steals her breath but almost knocks her out of her seat. He has the most beautiful smile in the history of smiles, no contest. She can't help the smile that forms on her lips in response and she lets out a breathless laugh. She looks down at her plate and takes another bite, not really knowing what to say.

"Good job choice." He tells her.

"Thanks." She takes a dip of water and tries to catch her breath without him noticing.

Maggie saves her by plopping a book down in front of her that is full of recipes for her to learn. She gives Valerie a little wink before walking away. Valerie smirks and shakes her head.

Eric grabs the book and looks through it while he finishes up his food and they finish dinner in silence.

After dinner they return to his apartment so that she can change and shower. Eric gets changed as well and she can't help but check him out. He's is still wearing black pants but they are more like a dress pant. He changed into a tight dark blue shirt and she almost drooled when she saw him and she was looking for her dress she had bought.

After her shower she puts on some make up. She has a sparkly light purple shadow and she lines her eyes with a little brown eye liner turned up at the tips of her lashes and some mascara. She decides to take a chance and puts on a dark reddish purple lipstick.

She puts on a dark purple dress that is lined with lace. It has two thin straps and falls right above mid thigh, showing quite a but of her legs and shoulders. She puts black heels on and leaves the room and making sure her long dark hair is falling in perfect waves.

She sees Eric standing in the kitchen finishing up a beer. When he sees her he almost spits the beer through his nose. She can feel her face getting hot and his eyes quickly travel up and down her body, making her shiver. The fluttering in her stomach is back again and she almost feels dizzy.

Eric clears his throat and appears to be trying to regain composure. Of course he's back to the calm, cool and dark Eric in no time as he leads her through the halls.

When they get to the bar he doesn't say anything, just heads to the other end of room. She finds Cory pretty quickly, he's tall and his raven black hair and pale skin stand out in a crowd. He smiles when he sees her coming and she makes her way to him, pushing through a crowd of people.

When she reaches him he pulls her into a tight hug again, which she notices is starting to get annoying.

"Wow!" Cory whistles as she sits beside him at the bar. "You look amazing."

"Thanks," she tells him. He looks great too, as usual. She doesn't tell him that though. She didn't want him to take it as some sort of invitation.

He smiles at her and then tells the bartender to bring her a drink of her choice. She orders some tequila shots and Cory looks at her with wide eyes. She laughs and he joins in.

"Rough day?" he asks. She laughs.

"Rough life." She answers. He frowns a bit.

"Speaking of which," Cory growls, sounding murderous. "Whoever tried to hurt you…if they come around here, I'll kill him." She looks into his now dark eyes and she sees a promise in them.

"I wouldn't want you to risk it. For me." She tells him, waving her hand to dismiss his offer. "Plus I have Eric to protect me." Cory's eyes narrow again when she says it.

The song changes and suddenly Cory jumps up. Valerie suppresses a groan and an eye roll as she realizes that its their song. Their old song. Before she can stop him, he's pulling her up and into his arms, swaying to the music with her pressed up against him, wrapped tight in his arms.

"I'm forever yours," he sings softly in her ear. "faithfully." She's suddenly angry at him. He's just another person who broke his promises to her. He left her, like everyone else.

With a scowl on her face she pushes away from him. Once she's untangled from his arms and she manages to push away from him she shakes her head and holds up her hand.

"No. That's over now." She tells him in a low voice and pushes past him. She goes to the bar and take a her shots.

She starts walking away, ignoring Cory's protests and she hears feet run up behind her. She feels a heavy material draped on her shoulders and she looks down to see Eric's black jacket.

She looks at him and he's got a murderous glare aimed at Cory. "You looked cold." He snaps at her and them takes her by the same wrist that Cory grabbed earlier and starts pulling her toward the exit.

She can only think about his hand on her wrist, he's touching her and she can't get over it.

She isn't cold, in fact she's hot but she keeps his jacket wrapped around her shoulders.

He doesn't speak to he for the rest of the night. They both change and get comfortable . Valerie lays down in bed and starts looking through the book that Maggie gave her.

Eric doesn't come get his jacket so she falls asleep next to it in her bed. She can't help but let the smell intoxicate her. It smells like Eric, mixed with his cologne. She cuddles up in bed and let's the smell over power her senses before drifting off to sleep.

AN:

Thank you to everyone who reads and reviews. Please don't hesitate to let me know what you think. Your reviews motivate me to write! I will update as much as I can. I hope you are all enjoying it so far! Face claim for Cory – Ian Somerhalder


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